Systems for mounting car telephones and the like are well known. Such mounting systems are either rigid or flexible in construction. Rigid mounting assemblies typically comprise a base which is attachable to a support surface, i.e., the floor, dashboard, fire wall, etc., of an automobile; a head plate to which the car telephone is attached; and a rigid elongate member interconnecting the base and head plate. The rigid elongate member is commonly attached to the base and head plate utilizing a universal-type joint so as to facilitate positioning of the mounted device as desired. Car telephones and other various devices, i.e. digital data transmission devices, etc., are commonly mounted in this manner.
Examples of such rigid mounting assemblies are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,836,485, issued on Jun. 6, 1989 to Cooper and in U.S. Pat. No. 5,118,058, issued on Jun. 2, 1992 to Richter, the contents of both of which are hereby incorporated by reference. Both patents disclose devices which utilize a rigid or non-flexible elongate member which interconnecting the base and the head. A universally adjustable joint attaches the mounting base to the rigid elongate interconnecting member and also attaches the rigid elongate interconnecting member to the head plate, to facilitate positioning of the mounted device as desired.
Such mounts are typically attached to the automobile via fasteners, i.e. screws, bolts, and nuts, etc., at a desired location. They are also attached to a telephone or other device in a similar manner. The elongate member and/or head plate are then oriented such that the telephone is positioned as desired and the universal joint set screw (Cooper) or knob (Richter) is tightened to maintain such positioning.
It is also known to use a flexible elongate shaft to obtain desired orientation and positioning of the mounted device. However, devices utilizing such a flexible elongate member attach the flexible elongate member to the base and head thereof via threaded male members formed upon both ends of the flexible elongate member and lock nuts disposed upon the threaded male members. Each threaded male member is threadably received into a complimentary female threaded member formed within the base and head. The lock nuts disposed upon the male threaded members are then tightened against the base and head to prevent loosening thereof.
However, repositioning of the mounted device, via bending of the flexible elongate shaft, tends to effect rotation of the threaded male members within the female threaded members, thus frequently causing loosening thereof. Once the threaded male member has loosened sufficiently to make the lock nut ineffective, the threaded male member is then free to loosen completely. Thus, such mounting assemblies do not mount devices such as telephones in a desirably secure manner.
As such, although the prior art has recognized to a limited extent the problem of adjustably mounting telephones and the like within an automobile, the preferred solutions have to date been ineffective in providing a satisfactory remedy.